Therapy bed



y 1958 A. P. HUDGINS 2,841,141

THERAPY BED Filed Dec. 29, 1952 INVENTOR ARCHIBALD PERRI HUDG NS a{:z:i BY 'g/ KM A TORNEYS United States Patent THERAPY BED Archibald Perrin Hudgins, Charleston, W. Va.

Application December 29, 1952, Serial No. 328,421

1 Claim. (Cl. 128-57) The present invention relates to a therapy bed and it consists in the combinations, constructions and arrange ments of parts herein described and claimed.

Generally there is provided a bed provided with a canvas cover and having mounted therein a motor which operates to horizontally reciprocate a roller beneath the upper portion of the bed to thus thereby apply a gentle massage to a patient or person lying upon the bed.

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a device of the character set forth which is simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture and yet eifective and efficient in use.

Other and further objects of the invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specification taken in conjunction with the drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view, partly broken away, of an embodiment of the invention,

Figure 2 is a plan view, partly broken away, of the device illustrated in Figure 1.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, there is shown therein a device of the character set forth comprising a longitudinally extending frame provided With a plurality of supporting wheels 11. The frame is provided with a canvas cover 12which is maintained in position by a plurality of tension springs 13 interconnecting the outer edges of the cover with the lower portion of the frame 10. Beneath the cover 12 there is provided a padding 14 which is provided adjacent the head end of the bed with an elongated opening 15.

A trackway 16 is mounted in the lower portion of the frame 10 and has reciprocally mounted thereon a car 17 having wheels 18 engaged in such trackway. Extending upwardly and rearwardly from the forward portion of the car 17 is a pair of arms 19 having transversely mounted in the upper portions thereof a massaging roller 20 covered with soft rubber or the like, the roller 20 being adapted to bear against the underside of the cover 12 within the opening 15.

The car 17 carries a vertical standard 21 and the arms 19 have extending downwardly therefrom brackets 22 the outer ends of which are interconnected with the standard 21 by means of tension springs 23 to normally force the roller 20 into contact with the canvas cover 12 as aforesaid.

A rod 25 extends forwardly and is pivotally connected, as at 26, to a crank arm 27 whose other end is aflixed to the shaft 28 of a reduction gear assembly 29 which is mounted in the lower end of the frame 10 and which reduction gear assembly 29 is driven by an electric motor 30 likewise mounted in the frame 10.

In the operation of this portion of the invention, it will be apparent that as the motor 30 is driven, it will act to revolve the shaft 28 and hence move the crank 27 to thus reciprocate the rod 25 and consequently move the car 17 and the massaging roller forwardly and rearwardly to thus massage gently'the head and shoulders of a patient who may be lying upon the cover 12.

While but one form of the invention has been shown and described herein, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that many minor modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

In a spinal massage apparatus, a frame, a sheet of canvas or the like covering the frame, padding mounted on the frame beneath the sheet, adjacent one end thereof, said padding having an opening therein, a trackway mounted on the lower portion of the frame, a car having Wheels mounted on said trackway, a pair of arms extending upwardly and rearwardly from the forward portion of the car, a massaging roller transversely mounted on the upper ends of said arms and extending through the opening to bear against the under surface of the. sheet, resilient means to normally urge the roller into engagement with the sheet, a motor mounted on the frame, and means connecting the motor and car to reciprocate the car.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 86,604 Taylor Feb. 2, 1869 1,587,737 Trumbull June 8, 1926 1,978,223 Parker Oct. 23, 1934 2,112,367 Hyter Mar. 29, 1938 2,175,614 Redfield Oct. 10, 1939 2,534,587 Fisher et a1. Dec. 19, 1950 2,660,999 Thornton Dec. 1, 1953 

